Low Doses of Ionizing Radiation as a Treatment for Alzheimer’s Disease: A Pilot Study
Autor: | Yael Goldberg, Sarmad Al-Shamaa, Sandra E. Black, Eslam Abdellah, Jerry M Cuttler, Morris Freedman, Sean P. Symons |
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Jazyk: | angličtina |
Rok vydání: | 2021 |
Předmět: |
0301 basic medicine
Oncology Male medicine.medical_specialty media_common.quotation_subject Pilot Projects Disease oxidative damage medicine.disease_cause Ionizing radiation 03 medical and health sciences 0302 clinical medicine Alzheimer Disease Internal medicine Radiation Ionizing Medicine Humans media_common Aged 80 and over therapy business.industry General Neuroscience Low dose Cognition Appetite General Medicine Clinical trial Psychiatry and Mental health Clinical Psychology Alertness 030104 developmental biology Female Geriatrics and Gerontology Cranial Irradiation business Adaptive protection systems Alzheimer’s disease 030217 neurology & neurosurgery Oxidative stress Research Article low-dose ionizing radiation |
Zdroj: | Journal of Alzheimer's Disease |
ISSN: | 1875-8908 1387-2877 |
Popis: | Background: In 2015, a patient in hospice with Alzheimer’s disease (AD) was treated with ionizing radiation to her brain using repeated CT scans. Improvement in cognition, speech, movement, and appetite was observed. These improvements were so momentous that she was discharged from the hospice to a long-term care home. Based on this case, we conducted a pilot clinical trial to examine the effect of low-dose ionizing radiation (LDIR) in severe AD. Objective: To determine whether the previously reported benefits of LDIR in a single case with AD could be observed again in other cases with AD when the same treatments are given. Methods: In this single-arm study, four patients were treated with three consecutive treatments of LDIR, each spaced two weeks apart. Qualitative changes in communication and behavior with close relatives were observed and recorded. Quantitative measures of cognition and behavior were administered pre and post LDIR treatments. Results: Minor improvements on quantitative measures were noted in three of the four patients following treatment. However, the qualitative observations of cognition and behavior suggested remarkable improvements within days post-treatment, including greater overall alertness. One patient showed no change. Conclusion: LDIR may be a promising, albeit controversial therapy for AD. Trials of patients with less severe AD, double-blind and placebo-controlled, should be carried out to determine the benefits of LDIR. Quantitative measures are needed that are sensitive to the remarkable changes induced by LDIR, such as biological markers of oxidative stress that are associated with AD. |
Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
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